Design & Build for Social Change!

Are you interested in public art, architecture, or participatory design?
Do you want to help improve the built environment and quality of life for all New Yorkers?

VOLUNTEER with Hester Street Collaborative! HSC has opportunities for one-day volunteer commitments, or longer-term projects for volunteers looking for a more in-depth experience in our participatory design work.
VOLUNTEER WITH HSC NEXT WEEK!

HSC’s Annual Lunar New Year Lantern Installation in Sara D. Roosevelt Park. HSC is seeking volunteers to help assemble and install LED-lit lanterns created by local students to celebrate the Year of the Tiger in Chinatown           

Dates: Saturday, February 6th (11 am – 3 pm). We’ll also welcome volunteers during the day on February 8th

We need your help! Contact Dylan (Dylan@hesterstreet.org) for more information 

OTHER SPRING & SUMMER 2010 VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES:

Create a mural at a middle school in Chinatown Dates: Spring 2010

Temporary art & design installations on the Allen & Pike Street MallsHSC is currently seeking out volunteers throughout Spring 2010 to help prototype, build, and install. Dates: Spring – Summer 2010

DESIGN EDUCATION-- Building an outdoor classroom for an elementary school on the LESVolunteers are needed for a new design education project to design and build a new outdoor classroom.Dates: Summer 2010 

These projects will allow volunteers to put their skills in computer design, drafting, woodworking, construction, or other specialized areas to use working along-side HSC staff members to plan and execute a component of one of our community design initiatives.

To learn more about these exciting volunteer opportunities or to propose your own ideas to support HSC’s participatory design work, contact Dylan House at Dylan@hesterstreet.org or 212-431-6780.  

Check our Facebook page regularly for new opportunities!

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A New Report by the O.U.R. Waterfront Coalition: A People's Plan for the East River Waterfront
The O.U.R. Waterfront Coalition has just released a report that proposes an alternative community based vision for the East River Waterfront; “A People’s Plan for the East River Waterfront.” To access the full report, please click here: ww.urbanjustice.org/pdf/publications/peoples_plan.pdf

The report was released on October 17, 2009 at the Two Bridges community room, which is located in the Lower East Side and overlooking the waterfront. The press conference was attended by various media outlets, elected officials, waterfront advocates and community members. Attendees included: U.S. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez; representatives from the offices of New York State Senator Daniel Squadron, New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, New York City Councilmember Alan Gerson as well as Roland Lewis, the president of Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance. The press conference was followed by a community celebration including a DJ, live music and children’s games.

In 2005, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) launched a plan to dramatically redevelop the waterfront in the Lower East Side and Chinatown. While many of the features were welcomed by residents, there was a fear that the development would accelerate the gentrification of Chinatown and the Lower East Side and concerns that current residents would not be able to access the new waterfront.

In response, several community organizations from throughout the Lower East Side and Chinatown formed the O.U.R. Waterfront Coalition to ensure that those most impacted by the development would have a voice in its process. The Coalition launched an extensive community visioning process that included collecting 800 surveys and holding visioning meetings that drew 300 residents, with the goal of creating an alternative, community-based plan for the waterfront.

This report is the product of the O.U.R. Waterfront Coalition’s community visioning process. It contains architectural renderings of the community’s vision as well as a financial analysis including operating and capital budgets that offer a blueprint for turning the community’s visioning into a reality. The “People’s Plan” also includes several policy recommendations that, if enacted, will go a long way towards ensuring that the new East River Waterfront remains a resource for the community.

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